TEHRAN, Iran — Two Americans accused of spying appeared in a closed-door Iranian court session Sunday to begin trial after an 18-month detention that has brought impassioned family appeals, a stunning bail deal to free their companion and backdoor diplomatic outreach by Washington through an Arab ally in the gulf.
All three — two in person and one in absentia — entered not guilty pleas during the five-hour hearing, said their attorney, Masoud Shafiei.
He added that he was barred by Iranian law from giving any further details of the proceedings. But he noted that the judge decided to hold at least one more session. He described the jailed Americans — Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal — as appearing in good health and said they sat next to him during the trial session.
Samantha Topping, a spokeswoman for Bauer’s and Fattal’s families in the U.S., said Sunday that they had no comment on the trial.
The case highlights the power of Iran’s judiciary, which is controlled directly by the nation’s ruling clerics and has rejected apparent appeals by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to show leniency. But Ahmadinejad has also tried to draw attention to Iranians in U.S. jails, raising the possibility the detainees have been viewed as potential bargaining chips with Washington at a time of high-stakes showdowns over Iran’s nuclear program.
Court authorities imposed a blanket ban on observers, including Swiss Ambassador Livia Leu Agosti, who represents U.S. interests in Iran in the absence of direct diplomatic relations.
The third American, Bauer’s fiancee, Sarah Shourd, was released in September on $500,000 bail arranged through the gulf nation of Oman, which maintains close ties to the West and Iran. She was ordered back to Tehran for the trial by Iranian officials, and the bail will likely be forfeited because of her absence.
The Americans were detained in July 2009 along the Iraqi border. They said they were hiking in Iraq’s Kurdistan region and that if they crossed into Iran, it was inadvertent.
Iran, however, pressed forward with spy charges that could bring a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison if convicted.
The families of the detainees have made high-profile appeals for their release, including during a visit by the three mothers to Tehran in May.
